"He has the legs to win himself": Tiesj Benoot names Tadej Pogacar's teammate as favourite for Flanders and Roubaix
Cycling
The spring classics are unfolding without Tiesj Benoot in the peloton. The Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale rider has been forced to watch the Monuments from home after undergoing surgery for a herniated disc. It is a tough situation that still does not stop him following every move in the races. In fact, he has been full of praise for his compatriot Florian Vermeersch who already stood on E3 and Omloop podiums this spring whilst often animating the remaining races.
On the Live Slow Ride Fast podcast, Benoot shared his thoughts on recent weeks, marked by his absence and by his team’s strong performances. He also believes that Vermeersch, who will ride the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix as a domestique for Tadej Pogacar, could quite feasibly win both races given his current level.
News of his operation broke in February, shortly after he joined his new team. The injury was a major blow, not only for the squad, which also lost Olav Kooij, but especially for Benoot himself.
The Belgian had previously explained that, despite the hernia, his physical numbers were excellent. He even said he had set his best three-minute power values and was completing one of his best winters. However, all that work was put on hold, forcing him to watch his favourite classics from the sofa.
Following the action… and his friends
Away from racing, Benoot misses nothing of the action. During the E3 Saxo Classic, he watched the finale with two friends while on holiday, enjoying both his team’s display and that of riders close to him.
Chief among them is Florian Vermeersch, with whom he has a close relationship, as he does with Stan Dewulf. The three often holiday together, which means Benoot pays particular attention to their performances.
"No doubt he has the legs to win a race right now, but he’s the kind of rider, like me, who needs everything to fall perfectly into place," he says of Vermeersch. The Belgian also highlights his recent progression: "Florian had already stepped up last year, but now he’s even better. Plus, he carries the confidence he gained straight away at Omloop."
Tactical read of the E3
One moment that really caught his eye was the chase of Mathieu van der Poel at the E3 Saxo Classic 2026, where Vermeersch and Dewulf featured prominently.
From his point of view, his friend made no mistakes: "He did the right thing. If he wants to win the race, he has to take turns. He took a risk and lost, but I think it’s admirable that he did."
Florian Vermeersch, a key rider for UAE Team Emirates - XRG
Benoot does add a nuance, focusing on communication between the two riders: "I don’t think they spoke to each other, but I would have. They’re good friends." He even goes a step further, imagining his own intervention: "I would have said: 'Come on, together we’ll make sure we still have a chance to win the race.'"
As his recovery continues, Benoot is living the spring from a distance, eyes fixed on the peloton… and especially on how his own are performing.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
claps 2visitors 2
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Right on. The more the merrier.Occam13-11-2026
- Remember, Del Toro struggled in this Tour. He is great, no doubt about that, but comparing him to a four time gt winner is absurd at this point. He has the potential. We'll have to see how he develops.awp13-11-2026
- what did Jonas gift and to whom? just curious, haven’t heard about this.mij13-11-2026
- You don't gift grand tours as it has come to light that Jonas has come to regret doing such.
Front24213-11-2026 - Exactly you said it urslf - he outclimbed del toro by 19 sec. 19SEC and you say hes alot better than del toro still lol? And can also do the same where del toro did that to jonas even and del toro dauphine numbers better than jonas all year so why this hard whats the issue its super easy stuff - del toro wasnt that before. Then factor in both their trajectory the last years and the answer is self explonatory like i said. Nothing against jonas like many do but the typing is no the wall and so stupidly easy as its so self explanatory now. Have a good daymiguel13-11-2026
- Dirty ex doperFront24213-11-2026
- As far as points go they need to take a page or ten out of the Astana playbook!Lozza13-11-2026
- Ah, seems he’s been busy elsewhere! 😆Lozza13-11-2026
- Where is he when you need him!? Wake up man! You’re missing an opportunity!Lozza13-11-2026
- A very true statement made by Johan Bruyneel: "We don’t know for sure about Jonas, because he dropped out of the Tour de France, but he would never have come close to Pogacar. Maybe he would have finished second. He won the Giro in dominant fashion and the Vuelta the year before, but Visma wants to win the Tour." That's exactly what I've been saying the last six months. If Pogi races with Jonas, the most he can be is second... UNLESS... Pogi crashes out or makes a BIG mistake, which is not likely to happen. Either Bruyneel thinks the way I do or he reads my posts. Ad acta!!!PogiSloFans13-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment